FYI - Most recent car is 2008 335i w sport & premium packs. Installed a Juicebox 3 and a dual cone intact for approx. 380hp, 380 lb ft of torque.

When I first got the Beemer, I wasn’t at all interested in the C350, and the C63 had just come out. There were no deals, there was a wait list, and lease/finance rates were disgusting. I couldn’t even get my hands on one to test drive. The M3’s were priced thru the roof (90k or so in Canada) so that was out of the question too. Not only that, its power band is just way too high for city life. Not enough torque. Horsepower is fun, but torque gets her done. So I got the 335i and tuned it. With the tune, I had more lb ft than the M3 and so it squirted pretty good in the city. I liked it, but I didn’t LOVE it. It just looked wimpy, and it was really spartan inside despite being loaded. Good driving car for sure though.

What I bought - 2008 C63 in Tenorite Grey. Approximately 23000 miles. MINT.
Paid roughly $48,000 Canadian, plus $2200 for the extended warranty. MB financed at 1.25% for 5 years and I bought it. Took the full 5 years cos WTF? At 1.25 on an AMG why wouldn’t why? I write off the interest anyways. MB installed brand new P-Zero Nero’s, carpet mats and winter mats. Yes, I know the P-Zeros will be gone in about a week but after the piece of crap run-flats on the Beemer I am not complaining.

Anyways, I am very very happy with this car. There is no replacement for displacement and I am a total torque ***** so I am very pleased. The way it pulls, the sounds it produces, the way it fires up! all make running to the corner store a treat. I can honestly say that every day when I park for the night I am disappointed cos I know that I am done driving for the day. I have a friend with a CLK55 cabrio and an E55 wagon and he lobbied very hard for me to get this car. He was absolutely right. As I was researching it I came across two reviews with quotes that really ring true to me now.

When you drive a lot of cars, they all start to feel kind of the same. Then you drive the C63 and you know that this is something special.
This car is just so....so.....visceral.

This car just gives so much feedback and it is all perfect. It is both a performance and a luxury car, and it drives like one. The M3 may handle better, but I have stayed in Motel 6’s with more luxurious interiors. And somebody call BMW and tell them that we found the M3’s missing torque - it’s under MY hood. I LOVE the sound, and it corners pretty damn well once you get used to it. It goes like a ****, sounds like it is going even faster and stops pretty damn well too - especially for its weight. I recently drove my 335i again, and the notion that in 2008 a C63 was only 12k more is laughable. Of course, the notion that the M3 is 15-25k more than a C63 is laughable also. And we have cupholders that don’t double as latte springboards so suck it propellorheads. Our stereos sound better too. Yes, I had the upgrade, and yes, the MB is better.

I have tinted my windows, replaced the ambers, spent $65 and installed a rear view camera (thx to all the forum members for the DIY on that), bought a Bel GX65 and an SD card adaptor for the PCMCIA slot. I just bought a helmet and am taking a driving class. I intend to buy some drag radials, and run it there a few times too. Just to make that musclehead in the 5.0 Mustang shut up.
I would like to tune it once I settle in a bit, get the illuminated door sills, and get the DVD in motion from cartronics.com. Maybe a Quaife as well. I’d love Dad’s hood, but that won’t happen.

My complaints are few and relatively minor. Some have been fixed on newer models.

The trans could shift a little crisper.
Aftermarket rims are a ***** due to the offsets. This may be a good thing, as I actually like the stock 18’s.
I hate the door pins. I had a Datsun 510 with pins like that. At least on that car there were options for replacement.
No back up sensors? Are you kidding me? Total bull pucks. Yes, I can park a car. No, I don’t NEED them. But I live in the city and I parallel on the street and don’t slot it at the office or the mall. Sometimes, you want to throw it in R and jam it in there as fast as you can and let traffic resume it’s flow. Sensors help. C63’s 2010 or newer have them.
That’s enough proof for me that they should have been there, especially since all the other C’s got em.
And, I could use some better iPod connectivity. But I put the SD card in and thats pretty good.

After being on e90post with the Beemer I am used to reading “well, thats a common problem with this car”. I had 4 headlights, 3 fuel pumps, 2 1/2 sets of injectors, 3 sets of plugs, and the brakes done twice (they still squealed). While its definitely too early for me to comment on reliability, it certainly reads like it will be a lot better.

Coolest thing? The 90 degree hood, and a signed, hand built motor.

All in all, I am stoked. I haven’t been this happy with a car in a long time. Thanks to all those who have preceded me and provided information and DIY’s and such. Thanks to the Dad’s and the Dodger’s of the world who fuel my mod addiction. I intend to post a couple “where do I get....” threads. I also intend to build a good quality detailing kit, as I find cleaning my car very calming, unless my kids are there. Now I am off to clean my garage cos I want to park my car inside this winter. It deserves it.

Stay golden.

 

Congrats and welcome to what many others on the board already know!

 

Congrats and welcome. The door pins is an easy and cheap fix.

 

Congrats from me as well Welcome to the dark side

 

...Pony Boy.

 

Great review. I come from an E90 as well and I know the feeling.

 

Congrats and enjoy!

 

Thanks guys. I felt I owed some sort of contribution other than my trademark sarcasm. I have absolutely stalked this site for the last month, and it was time to produce some content.

 

Congrats and welcome to the AMG club!

 

Excellent quote!

Great write up.

 

Congrats! Welcome to another C63 local

 

Congrats on your new car! Its great that you are having so much fun. when I first purchased my C63 last year I knew it had a wicked engine but I didn't really know how awesome of a car it was until I owned it and drove it for a little while. I was blown away at how the car drove and how hard it pulled. I think all of us here made great choices.

I will say -- having run my buddies OE tuned n54- equippeed 135I -- those engines wake up to little beasts with just a tune, and against a stock C63, if they get the jump on you, they can keep ahead until about 90 mph. I know you had the 335, but perhaps you also had the n54.

 

Great reading your report, welcome to the world of AMG. In a totally different class all-together.

 

Congrats bro! You're gonna love your C63 AMG Power!!!

 

I did indeed, and you're right - the tune really woke it up. It would take the M off the line, cos it had an extra 100 lb ft of torque. There's a reason they're still using that motor in the 1 m-series and the 335is. Like our C's there is a lot of untapped potential there.

 

For sure.

 

Welcome and congrats on you new toy.
Tune/Quaife LSD and you will have all the fun in the world
After the 2 mods it will be a totally different animal.
Extra 70HP and both tires gripping = smile from ear to ear.

 

great review and that sums it up perfectly! it took a short test drive for me to know this was "the one" for me.

and no offense to BMW owners but i am really sick and tired of all the reviews that seem to choose the M3 over the C63 almost automatically. Being a recreational shooter, i look at it this way...there are those people who show up at the range, take 30 min to set up, do all sorts of breathing exercises, take 30 min between each shot and then leave frustrated and shaking their heads because their last shot was .0000006" off target. I imagine these people would love an M3. Then there are people like me who show up with a bunch of 12 gauges, blast whatever target we are shooting into a million pieces in a few minutes and leave with a HUGE smile on our face. I drive an AMG.

RL

 

+1...another ex-335i owner as well!

 

I also had a 335i Coupe with steptronic and similar mods, as far is the tune I had the Vishnu 1.4 piggyback and BMC filters. My 335i was quicker(by .2c in the 1/4 mile) that my C63 is now and it trapped excatly the same trap speeds (111mph).

I know that the C63 puts a lot of torque down but the N54 also puts similar torque at the same rpms specially with a flash. Add the fact that the 335i weighst a few hundred pouns less and we are talking about similar performance.

 

Haha!

I dunno, I shoot too and sometimes I like the exclamation produced by the shotty but most of the time I'm seeking precision from the 9mm and .45; the C63 offers plenty of both.

 

From you 335 owners, how bad is that hpfp issue? I'm thinking of picking one up as a daily driver. Do all n54's have hpfp and lpfp issues? Or is it a case of bad luck?

 

^^ I had mine for only 9 months, I purchased mine new in May 2007 but traded it in for a 2008 C6 Z06 in March of 08. I put 7700 miles in the 9 months that I had it but never had any fuel issues (I guess I was lucky). I never had any overheating issues either because mine came with the oil cooler since I ordered the sport package. Ocasionally I had a CEL but it was bogus, I ran a Vishnu piggy back then.

BMW did recall the fuel pumps later on so you should be OK. Just make sure that you get one with oil cooler (with the sport package). Later models came with oil coolers already. The one MUST to have is the Steptronic transmission, it virtually wipes the manual transmission is absolutely every single comparo you can trhow at it(acceleration, gas mileage, comfort, reliability, roll acceleration, etc).

 

Had my 07 335 for 2 years and had no problems...loved that car.

 

congrats!